ONTARIO INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT MASTER PLAN PUBLIC MEETINGS SCHEDULED FOR AUGUST 17 AT ONTARIO CONVENTION CENTER
(Los Angeles, California – August 13, 2004) Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA), jointly with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), will hold a scoping meeting for the proposed Ontario International Airport (ONT) Master Plan from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, August 17, 2004 at the Ontario Convention Center in the City of Ontario, California.
The purpose of the scoping meeting is to receive input from interested parties regarding the scope and content of information to be included in the ONT Master Plan Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and Environmental Impact Report (EIR). A joint EIS/EIR will be prepared in accordance with the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act and California Environmental Quality Act, respectively, for future development recommended by the ONT Master Plan. A Notice of Intent (NOI) by the FAA and a Notice of Preparation (NOP) by LAWA, which owns and operates ONT, were announced in July. The NOI/NOP informed governmental agencies and the public of the FAA's and LAWA's intent to prepare an EIS/EIR.
The development of a new ONT Master Plan was initiated by LAWA, a Los Angeles city department which also owns Los Angeles International (LAX), Van Nuys (VNY) and Palmdale (PMD) Airports, under the direction of Los Angeles Mayor Jim Hahn to promote a regional solution to Southern California's air transportation system and to help accommodate more travelers and air service at ONT.
"The ONT Master Plan shows significant and tangible progress in the growth of other regional airports and that real investment is being made to accomplish a regional solution to air traffic," said Jim Ritchie, LAWA's deputy executive director for long range planning. "While other airports in the region may be constrained from growth, Ontario International is ready to accommodate a larger share of the total regional passenger and air cargo demand than it currently accommodates. The Master Plan will guide the development of ONT through 2030."
The Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) 2004 Regional Transportation Plan (RTP) predicts that regional passenger demand will double by 2030 and that air cargo demand will more than triple. The SCAG RTP relies on ONT to accommodate this growing regional demand since other airports in the region face restrictions on growth and expansion.
"The City of Ontario works closely and cooperatively with LAWA to ensure a smooth development of the ONT Master Plan," said Ontario Mayor Gary Ovitt. "We are pleased in the investment being made at Ontario International, which is located in a dynamic and one of the fastest growing cities in the Inland Empire."
ONT, located approximately 35 miles east of Los Angeles at the western end of San Bernardino County, currently handles 6.5 million annual passengers and over 500,000 tons of cargo. The airport's service area includes the Inland Empire (San Bernardino and Riverside Counties), east San Gabriel Valley, and north Orange County.
